2024 Salone del Mobile: Milan Design Week's Highlight

The Cultural Pulling-Power of Milan Design Week

A Record-Breaking Year

Now in its 62nd edition, Salone del Mobile, which anchors Milan Design Week, is the design world’s biggest moment of the year. Each edition, industry flocks to the gates of the event to unearth the new and next in design, architecture, and lifestyle. With over 370k visitors attending this year, the fair saw a +20.2% growth from 2023.

The event’s industry prestige and significant international footfall (65.6% of the fair’s visitors were from overseas) bring a buzz that spills into the streets of Milan’s ‘FuoriSalone’, the peripheral fanfare to the main event. The week’s democratic access has emblazoned Milan Design Week as one of the hottest moments on the cultural calendar. Awash with activity and consumers, Salone has become a hotbed for brand activations that now branch further than the design world alone, each with the mission to grab a slice of the $4.3 trillion lifestyle sector.

Salone Under The Social Gaze

Although only a few were there to demonstrate their prowess in the lucrative homeware category. For most, Milan Design Week has become a marketing moment to show up and stand out, especially across the all-seeing eye of social media.

Milan Design Week 2024 by Numbers

Most Popular Posts

Brands Who Won on Digital

Understanding the Rankings

WHY CLICKS DON’T ALWAYS EQUAL CREDIBILITY

Before we begin, an important precursor. This study delves into the online impact of brands at Milan Design Week 2024. It’s essential to clarify that our report focuses solely on online visibility, not the design credibility of brands showcased at Salone del Mobile or FuoriSalone. The report reflects the online Share of Voice and is driven by the impact of influential profiles in the digital space and brands’ owned media strategies.

A DIGITAL DOWNLOAD OF MILAN DESIGN WEEK

We tracked over 18K social media profiles attending Milan Design Week, tagging hundreds of participating brands across categories to analyze their Earned Media Value (EMV) and Share of Voice (SOV). For a comprehensive understanding of our methodology and how Lefty measures impact.

DESIGN AND THE SHIFTING STRATOSPHERE OF SOCIAL

Although influencer marketing is not as commonly used in the design space as in industries such as fashion, one key observation is that as brands across all sectors enter the Salone del Mobile conversation, a diverse array of digital strategies is coming into full focus, with fashion houses like Versace, Loewe, and Loro Piana employing similar tactics to ones used to garner massive amounts of attention during crowded fashion weeks.

With this in mind, many design brands are taking note: Molteni&C entered the conversation by taking a page from fashion’s playbook and using internationally renowned talent with large online followings to drum up engagement, surpassing even activations and installations that saw long lines and heavy footfall throughout the week.

THE STRATEGIC OPPORTUNITY

Our findings unveil surprising insights and diverse opportunities for brands in the design realm and those showing up in wider sectors of culture. By dissecting key brand strategies and highlighting profiles making waves in the design scene, both through paid partnerships and organically, we aim to empower brands to thrive in this dynamic space.

Noise by Category

Total Share of Voice, Earned Media Value and Number 1 activation per category

Top 10 Most Visibile Brands (All categories)

Key Insights and Strategies

1. How Design Moves in the Digital Age

1.1. DESIGN DOMINATES 46% OF THE SHARE OF VOICE ONLINE

Ostensibly the main focus, design brands from around the world capitalised on the outsize interest focused on Milan during Salone del Mobile to showcase their latest offerings, set trends, and charter the course for the industry’s future. Whether at the industry-centric Fiera trade fair or the public FuoriSalone events, brands strategically aimed to make waves and reach diverse audiences. This season, design reigned supreme, commanding a significant 46% of the online voice share, totaling $13.5 million in Earned Media Value (EMV).

1.2. CREATIVE STRATEGY AND POWER PARTNERSHIPS

Amidst the scene, Milan Design Week finds itself in a crowded calendar. As throngs of visitors descend, smartphones are ready; the event has transformed into a digital playground. With Instagram emerging as the go-to platform for event highlights, brands employ various strategies to stand out amidst the noise.

1.3. ALCOVA, FLOS, CASSINA, AND NILUFAR ARE MOST POSTED ABOUT

Earned media value unveils influential voices' true impact and signifies key players' reach. However, a closer look at the volume of posts surrounding each event paints a clearer picture of overall popularity. Among the top ten, ALCOVA, FLOS, CASSINA, and NILUFAR emerged as the most buzzed-about names, indicating their events attracted the highest footfall this year.

1.4. MOLTENI&C’S INFLUENCE

Fashion brands thrived during Milan Design Week’s digital sphere, leveraging influencer and VIP partnerships for success. However, Molteni&C stood out by disrupting the digital landscape with a compelling installation and exclusive events, drawing in a roster of VIPs and global influencers. In the following sections, we delve into the top ten strategies and explore the influential opportunities intertwined with the digital impact of Design Week.

1.5. MOST VISIBLE DESIGN BRANDS

2. Design Brands' Winning Moments

2.1. THE CELEBRITY APPEAL

Molteni&C: Leading Italian furniture brand, Molteni&C took notes from its fashion counterparts, implementing a water-tight celebrity strategy that drove significant visibility online. The brand hosted a dinner beneath Anselm Kiefer’s towering installation, The Seven Heavenly Palaces, at Hangar Bicocca with a guestlist that brought together design heavyweights with talent from across the worlds of art, fashion, and design, including Taiwanese actress Janine Chang, Spanish creator Blanca Miro and brand ambassador Alex Rivière-Sieber.

2.2. THE POWER OF LOCATION

Alcova, Flos, and Artemest: Alcova amplified its spotlight on emerging designers (who bear less online presence) via strategic locations. Crowds of design enthusiasts have seen boarding trains outside the Milan city center - where the rest of the FuoriSalone action was - to visit two iconic sites: Villa Borsani and Villa Bagatti Valsecchi. Similarly, lighting brand Flos bet on the historical building Palazzo Visconti (in the picture) to create a striking contrast between Italian heritage and modern design; Artemest recreated an ‘Appartamento’ in a 1930s building in the 5Vie district.

2.3. CROSS-CATEGORY COLLABORATIONS

CC-Tapis, Cassina, Kartell and Nilufar: Collaborations across categories proved successful, extending reach beyond design alone. CC-Tapis partnered with brands from Tacchini to fashion labels Toogood and Gucci, while Kartell enrolled Inter Milan, Illy Caffè, Barbie, and Liberty London to boost its visibility. Cassina bet on a collaboration with Bottega Veneta, teased during the fashion brand's AW24 runway show in February to drive hype, while Nilufar Gallery commissioned digital artist Andrés Reisinger, who boasts an engagement rate of 3.22% on Instagram.

2.4. THEATRICAL INSTALLATIONS

Lavist and Kohler: Amidst a saturated cultural moment, installations that opted for immersive and dramatic flourishes left a lasting impact and drove engagement online. Czech lighting designer Lasvit created an interactive glass-paneled maze, titled Porta, in the courtyard of Palazzo Isimbardi that invited visitors to explore new possibilities for glassmaking. Kohler, alongside an appearance at the fair, crafted a vibrant FuoriSalone activation in partnership with artist and designer Samuel Ross that outfitted the Palazzo del Senato with eye-catching orange pipes and a bespoke orange toilet.

2.5. MEDIA PARTNERSHIPS

IKEA and Marimekko: Tactical alignment with relevant media titles helped add credibility to some design brands. Ikea, who broke into the top 10 design entities showing at Fuorisalone, received further amplification due to a clever partnership with Dazed. Finnish brand Marimekko joined forces with influential magazine Apartamento to rebrand a bar and host a buzz-worthy party featuring key design names like Daniel Rybakken, Misha Kahn, and Sabine Marcelis.

3. Design and the Influencer Opportunity

3.1. DEMOCRACY DRIVES DIVERSITY IN THE INFLUENCER SPACE

With Design Week a public affair, the impact of influence becomes more diverse compared to events such as Fashion Week. Although influence exists in the design world, it is more discreet and often industry-orientated. In fact, ‘influencers’ by category generated just 6% of the share of voice. However, design brands that did work with influencers and celebrities—such as Molteni&C—saw a significant uptick in digital presence.

3.2. INFLUENCERS & VIPS DRIVE EMV AT FASHION EVENTS

Part of the success of fashion brands in the digital ecosystem of Milan Design Week is their expertise in influencer strategy. German brand MCM Worldwide invited Ed Westwick and Chiara King to unveil the launch of its Wearable Casa collection. Both talents topped the most visible profiles, generating over $600K in EMV for the brand. Meanwhile, the success of Loewe and Loro Piana was — in part — thanks to their relationship with talent who were present at their event. Loewe worked with TikToker Ayamé to promote its showcase of lamps with a video accumulating over 1.5M views on TikTok, while Loro Piana invited many digital native talents, including fashion-parody account Angela Hicks, whose fun-filled content for the brand garnered $26K EMV, showcasing how humor and authenticity cut through the social media space.

3.3. THE DESIGN OPPORTUNITY

With fewer influencer heavyweights on the ground than in fashion season, Design Week’s most impactful profiles give an insight into personalities creating organic influence for brands. For instance, daysofmilan, a British content creator living in the city, generated a staggering $122K across her coverage with a 19% engagement rate, making her the 5th most impactful profile of the week. Likewise, basilgreenpencil, a digital design creator, garnered $82K EMV for multiple brands. These profiles present brands with an opportunity to align with creators who show clear design interests, topped with a highly engaged audience.

3.4. THREE PROFILES TO WATCH

3.4.1. THE LOCAL INFLUENCER DRIVING EMV: @daysofmilan

Driving a staggering $122k over the week's events, @daysofmilan is a British profile living in Milan. Her content provides local reviews and recommendations around Milan, uncovering new eateries and upcoming exhibitions. Her engagement around the week was an enormous 19.56%, showcasing how receptive her audience is to her content. She taps into the trend for localism as a key concept for talent and marketing strategies, as uncovered in our Marketing in a World of Paradox report.

3.4.2. THE DESIGNER BLENDING IRL & URL: @reisingerandres

Andrés Reisinger is an Argentinian designer and 3D artist who rose to prominence on Instagram for his dreamy digital renderings and surrealist brand collaborations that blend URL and IRL. At Milan Design Week, he worked alongside the esteemed Nilufar Gallery, showcasing ‘12 Chairs for Meditation’ alongside a striking site-specific mosaic and a bespoke musical piece composed by the artist. His dominance in the rankings showcases the importance of digital design in the landscape and its resonance with today’s audiences.

3.4.3. THE PARODIST AT LORO PIANA: @angelicahicks

Loro Piana’s influencer strategy is a masterclass in the nuances of contemporary communication and showcases how even in the most ‘quiet’ of luxury brands, you can still make noise online. At Design Week, the brand invited several talents to its digital roster, including parody accounts such as Gstaad Guy and Angelica Hicks. Angelica is known online for re-creating famous fashion looks from DIY materials at home, and her post about the brand’s event generated 5.5M Impressions, showing the importance of influencers to drive visibility.

3.5. MOST VISIBLE INFLUENCERS (ALL CATEGORIES)

4. How Fashion Brands Triumphed at FuoriSalone

Luxury fashion brands continue moving across categories to widen their cultural gravitas. Leveraging FuoriSalone to cement their ties to the design world, activations ranged from furniture showcases to collaborations with esteemed designers to interactive programs designed to inspire the design audience. As a result, fashion brands generated an overall EMV of $9.41M, making it the second biggest category to drive noise after design.

4.1. VERSACE: $1.1M EMV - CELEBRITY STRATEGY

Versace leveraged its long-standing ties to celebrity culture to drive noise. Italian rapper Fedez drove noise alongside Donatella, who landed in the top 3 KOL for the week. This was paired with an exclusive feel as the public was allowed for the first time into Gianni Versace’s home, Palazzo Versace — the name of the event, ‘If These Walls Could Talk’ was a nod to the founder’s iconic past.

4.2. LOEWE: $986K EMV - CELEBRATION OF CRAFT

With craft at the core of its brand identity, Loewe handed its platform to young designers such as Young Soon Lee from Korea and Andile Dyalvane from South Africa. Many of the creations were for sale, further driving commercial prospects for the brand. Visitors were given exclusive Loewe carriers, spotted city-wide to spread awareness of the popular activation.

4.3. LORO PIANA: $970.5K EMV - BA'S DRIVE IMPACT

Honoring the late Cini Voeri's archives, Loro Piana worked alongside its TikTok talent roster to generate weekly visibility. Key profiles included @angelicahicks, @okdeon, and @callummullin. The brand's work with humor-led talents, such as Gstaad Guy, showcases the value of lightheartedness, even in the most intellectual of forums.

4.4. HERMÈS: $736.8K EMV - NOD TO THE PAST

Hermès relied on its homeware line’s brand prestige, curating a spectacular immersive experience to showcase its well-established home line. Aimed to highlight its savoir-faire, the band dove into its expansive archives to reinvent pieces from its past. Positioned next to events such as the popular Dimore Gallery, the location saw a constant flow of footfall throughout the week.

4.5. GUCCI: $633.7K EMV - ALIGNMENT WITH DESIGN

Gucci dipped its toe into design by collaborating with iconic Italian houses such as Tacchini, Acerbis, and more, with 5 pieces reinvented in Ancora red. Across the city, the brand started with kiosks offering passers-by flowers and Gucci-branded goods to drive hype, creating snaking queues around the town.

5. The Media Make Design Week Their Own

5.1. MEDIA REMAINS THE AUTHORITY VOICE IN DESIGN INFLUENCE

As crowds pour into Milan, audiences turn to design publications to guide their visit and help curate the standout exhibitions amongst a bevy of options across the city. Design media continues to be a reputable source of information and a powerhouse in the digital circuit. This year, media titles generated $4M EMV— 19% of the week’s total share of voice across socials. A steady increase in EMV after the Monday of Salone, when press previews occur, shows the media’s ability to drive the conversation.

5.2. BUILDING A PHYSICAL PRESENCE

Beyond traditional content surrounding the events, media publications doubled down on physical activations, establishing a presence throughout the city and partnering with brands to gain visibility and lend activations a press-sponsored stamp of approval. Milan’s signature newsstands, for instance, were redecorated and color-branded based on new collaborations, like the Belmond and Airmail kiosk strategically placed in the heart of the Brera Design District. Ikea and Dazed collaborated on a magazine that accompanied the furniture brand’s immersive exhibition, while Bottega Veneta tapped into the Italian press, taking over the newspaper Corriere Della Sera with an external sleeve that sported images from the Cassina stools on view it's ‘On The Rocks’ exhibition.

Publications leveraged the Milan creative scene to cement their authority in the design space. Door magazine, under the umbrella of the newspaper La Repubblica, launched its latest issue, ‘People Make Salone, ’ with a party held in the international bank’s old vault. The party highlighted the Door 100 list featuring key figures—like Maria Porro, President of Salone, Nina Yashar of Nilufar Gallery, Dimorestudio’s Britt Moran and Emiliano Salci, and more—who have helped make Milan’s design scene what it is today.

5.3. PARTY PEOPLE

Hosting events proved a successful and popular strategy for many media titles who took advantage of the bustling week to throw a soiree—or two, or three—of their own. The New York Times Style Magazine celebrated its annual party at Villa Necchi with T-shaped balloons and cookies, generating $93K in EMV. Meanwhile, Highsnobiety launched its proprietary Not in Milan campaign with a series of clever collaborations, aperitivi, parties, and even an organized running club, announcing its presence in the city and helping the Berlin-based brand generate $291K in EMV throughout the week.

5.4. TOP 5 MOST VISIBLE MEDIA ACTIVATIONS (INSTAGRAM)

5.4.1. HIGHSNOBIETY: $291K EMV

The Berlin-based publisher and retailer made its presence known at this year’s Milan Design Week with a multi-pronged appearance that included collaboration with the furniture fair and Bar Basso and a packed program of parties and aperitivi throughout the week.

5.4.2. CABANA MAGAZINE: $191K EMV

The Milan-based design magazine launched a savvy anniversary celebration during Milan Design Week that included a city guide created in partnership with Ralph Lauren, a special edition issue with covers designed by Maison Valentino, a takeover of the storied cafe Sant Ambroeus and a dinner party curated by Laila Gohar.

5.4.3. WALL STREET JOURNAL: $170K EMV

The American newspaper announced its presence at Milan Design Week with its annual soiree at Palazzo Triviulzio Brivio Sforza this year. The party garnered significant hype thanks to a guest list that included Athena Calderone, Emily Weiss, Faye Toogood, and other design world luminaries.

5.4.4. T NEW YORK TIMES STYLE MAGAZINE: $93K EMV

The iconic magazine hosted its now mythic party on the grounds of Villa Necchi Campiglio, complete with an installation organized by artist Ramdane Touhami and a coterie of branded moments that included T-shaped metallic balloons floating in the pool and macaroons baked in the magazine’s instantly recognizable T logo.

5.4.5. DOOR MAGAZINE: $24K EMV

Italian design magazine Door celebrated Salone del Mobile with a special issue dedicated to 100 figures from the Italian design scene who have helped establish the city as a contemporary signpost for international design. The issue was launched with a party held in the vaults of an old bank.

6. Five Strategies to Show up in the City

Design Week’s expansive footfall is marketing gold dust for brands across categories. Those who don’t have a design feather in their hat capitalized on the moment with a myriad of clever cross-cultural digital and physical activations that drove brand awareness. Here are our best-in-class highlights:

6.1. THE FULL-CITY TAKEOVER: VEUVE CLICQUOT

In collaboration with Magnum, Veuve Clicquot painted the town yellow in a multi-touchpoint activation anchored by the photography exhibition, ‘Emotions of the Sun’. Veuve created an experiential space, including a garden where guests could enjoy champagne on branded loungers or indulge in yellow-themed cuisine. Guests departed via a gift store featuring a range of brand collaborations and product personalization stations, creating a clever way to capture data and leverage experience. Vueve also took over the city’s trams and appeared at the popular ALCOVA. Their expansive city takeover made them the 6th most visible brand during design week.

6.2. THE ART OF KIOSK GIFTING: ZEGNA

Pop-up kiosks have become key to capturing footfall amongst the busy streets of Milan, attracting crowds by giving away branded merchandise. Zegna made a splash with its ‘Born in Oasi’ citywide takeover, which included a kiosk on Via dei Giardini plastered with imagery from the brand’s recently released book. Zegna used the outpost to disseminate its limited-edition tote bags, providing easy access for passers-by to acquire one of the week’s most sought-after pieces of merch.

6.3. LEVERAGING THE LOCAL: MARIMEKKO & APARAMENTO AT BAR UNIKKO

Finish design brand Marimekko joined forces with Apartamento magazine to create Bar Unikko, a takeover of the classic Milanese locale Bar Stoppani, in celebration of the 6th anniversary of their 'Unikko' print. The week-long takeover featured community happenings, from apperitivo hours to design luncheons, all within a fully branded space—down to the napkins.

6.4. CROSS-CATEGORY COLLABORATIONS: RIMOWA X LA MARZOCCO 'CAFE RIMOWA'

The best collaborations took on an air of the unexpected, as with the RIMOWA x LA MARZOCCO collaboration, which saw their coffee machine undergo a contemporary re-craft in true Rimowa style. The collaboration came equipped with a physical ‘CAFFÈ RIMOWA’ pop-up, strategically positioned next to CAPSULE, the much-buzzed-about design collective, gaining the brand footfall and street credibility in one.

6.5. WORDS & WORKSHOPS: PRADA & MIU MIU

Prada and Miu Miu anchored their design intellect by hosting a series of talks and workshops during FuoriSalone. Prada Frames reflected on the philosophical purpose of a space through a series of talks hosted in a historical Milanese palazzo, all contextualized by award-winning design critic Alice Rawsthorn. Meanwhile, Miu Miu’s Literary Club highlighted the work of Italian writer and poet Sibilla Aleramo and Cuban-Italian writer Alba De Céspedes. The panels featured inspiring women in the literary universe.

7. Ones to Watch: Strategic Opportunities

7.1. HEALTH & WELLNESS: TECHNOGYM ENTERED THE TOP 10 WITH $703K EMV

The success of Technogym speaks to a wider macro-trend around wellness, which took flight post-pandemic. We’ve seen renewed interest in activities like running, which prompted media title Highsnobiety to host a Run Club during the week as part of its ‘Not In Milan’ series.
As consumers also seek to prioritize mental health, some activations leveraged this sentiment, such as David Lynch’s Thinking Room at the Salone fair and Andrés Reisinger’s meditation chairs showcased at the Nilufar depot.

7.2. BEYOND HOSPITALITY: CAFFÈ RIMOWA DRUMMED UP $197K EMV

CAFFÈ RIMOWA’s appeal was down to an unexpected pairing between luggage brand Rimowa and coffee machine brand La Marzocco. Similarly, Dimorestudio invited Nespresso to participate in its launch party, generating $263.9K in EMV. There is a key opportunity beyond hospitality alone for product design collaborations and partnerships with Alessi and VZug.

7.3. BEAUTY: AESOP'S SENSORY EXPERIENCE DROVE $190K IN EMV

While only a few beauty brands have started to enter this space, there is a big opportunity for partnerships, especially in color design, packaging, and creating multi-sensory experiences. At a lower price point, there is also room to reinvent out-of-home placements and city takeovers with branded handouts.

7.4. ARTS & CULTURE: THOM BROWNE X FRETTE LEVERAGED THE ART OF PERFORMANCE

Performance-related activations at Audi, Thom Browne, and VZug generated significant buzz around the opening day, proving the wider cultural space prospects. In Thom Browne and Frette’s case, the performance drew on Gen Z’s renewed interest in sleep and wellness, making it a well-thought-out cultural activation.

7.5. YOUNG DESIGNERS: FIND OUT THE NEW NAMES ON THE SCENE

From Salone Satellite, founded by Marva Griffin, through to Alcova and Capsule Plaza, the appeal of emerging talent was evidenced on the grid with Alcova generating up to $551K EMV. Brands should look to partner with younger designers who generate buzz through conceptual creations that catch audiences’ attention online.